Key A-bomb survivor battling against nukes, time after 65 yrs+

TOKYO, July 30 Kyodo -
During the 15-hour flight back from New York, Sumiteru Taniguchi hardly caught
any sleep. Leaning against a small foldable table stretched out before him on
the plane, the 81-year-old was trying to keep his back from touching his seat
the whole time -- something he is forced to do because of the pain that has
been haunting him for the last 65 years.
After losing most of his back skin and much flesh from the some
3,000-degrees-Celsius heat of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki on Aug. 9, 1945,
he says a sensation like lying on rocks wakes him up every hour or so at night
even in bed and forbids him from turning over.
He made the visit to the American city in May despite the physical hardships of
traveling as it was something special. In representing some 230,000 atomic bomb
victims of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, Taniguchi reiterated his call for nuclear
abolition at the U.N. review conference for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty.
Yet the special event left him disappointed and in doubt as he reflected on the
occasion after coming home to Japan.
''I am not a guinea pig, nor am I an exhibit. But those of you who are here
today, please don't turn your eyes away from me. Please look at me again,'' he
called out to an audience of some 400 people in New York, showing a picture of
himself at age 17.
The color image of him, blood-soaked and lying on his stomach to receive
treatment about half a year after the bombing, was the same picture he has
printed onto his name card, which he says he gives to people who may be
thinking it is ''not their problem.''
''I cannot die in peace without seeing the last nuclear warhead eliminated from
this world,'' he said.
The speech came after the Japanese victims' hopes for nuclear abolition were
heightened by U.S. President Barack Obama's speech in Prague last year that
called for a nuclear free world.
With the applause he received, Taniguchi said he felt he was able to move the
audience, but in an interview in Tokyo, he also voiced doubt about whether his
voice was actually heard by the world.
There was hardly any coverage by the U.S. media on some 2,000 people, he said,
which included dozens of atomic bomb survivors who traveled together with
Taniguchi, thinking it could be their last chance to directly convey their
feelings against nuclear weapons.
The NPT review conference, held every five years, ended this time with the
adoption of a final document that calls for 64 action plans including reporting
the progress of nuclear arms reduction.
While calling it ''better than five years ago'' as the previous review
conference failed to adopt a final document due to a rift between states,
Taniguchi said it was ''far from enough'' as the world only agreed to reduce
the number of nuclear weapons and not on eradicating them by 2020 as sought by
the two Japanese cities that were devastated by the bombings.
Added to his frustration was Japan's start of talks in June with India, a
non-signatory state to the NPT, which is aimed at sealing a bilateral pact on
civilian nuclear cooperation.
The talks angered antinuclear groups, who say the move undermines Japan's call
for nuclear disarmament, while the government responded that the envisaged pact
would press New Delhi to make certain commitments to nuclear disarmament and
nonproliferation.
''I must say the government is not seriously considering (its actions) as the
country that has suffered atomic bombings,'' Taniguchi said. ''Trying to strike
a nuclear deal? What are they thinking?''
His growing frustration over nuclear issues is lined with concerns that the
voices of the first generation would soon be lost. The average age of atomic
bomb survivors is nearing 80 now, and the situation is increasingly looking
like a race against the clock.
''I don't know how it will be five years from now,'' Taniguchi said, adding his
friends who have been involved in the antinuclear movement with him from the
start are almost all gone. ''The world must hear us while we are still here.''
The Japan Confederation of A-and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, the single
largest nationwide group of atomic bomb victims in Japan, for which Taniguchi
serves as a representative, has already lost its organizations in Nara and
Shiga prefectures due to declining membership.
When the group, commonly known as Hidankyo, held its periodic meeting in Tokyo
in mid-June, a number of its members voiced concerns over how to pass down
their experiences to the younger generation, with those in their late 60s
mentioning struggles in telling their stories to others as they were too young
to remember the event personally despite being a victim.
Taniguchi also said not many second-generation victims are openly involved in
antinuclear campaigning, indicating they will not serve a major driving force
like the first generation has so far.
Saying he cannot forcibly drag them to join the move, as some second-generation
victims are hesitant to come forward for fear they might face discrimination,
Taniguchi said there is a need for the first generation to continue sharing its
experiences.
Although his speech at the NPT conference failed to catch much attention in the
U.S. mass media, Taniguchi found some seeds of hope for the future during his
stay in New York after seeing many younger people coming to listen to his story
when he visited local schools.
''They listened to us intently and said such a tragedy must never be
repeated,'' he said. ''They are our hope.''
''We must keep telling the world that the event did not end 65 years ago, and
it could be repeated somewhere today,'' he said.
==Kyodo
2010-07-30 23:18:38


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